Where every day in the kitchen is an adventure!

Pastry

Some of you may remember not too long ago I interviewed Matthew McCool, head chef of Altitude Restaurant of the Shangri La. I found it very interesting to have a glimpse of what it’s like to work professionally with one of my great passions – food. So when the opportunity to interview the incredibly talented Anna Polyviou, Executive Pastry Chef at the Shangri-La in Sydney, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity!

As many bloggers do, I absolutely love baking – especially baking sweet treats. While I’m not sure if I would suit the pastry chef occupation, I do know of some friends who are interested in breaking into that field. I mean who could blame them – creating sweet treats that everyone loves definitely seems like a dream job!

So, let’s dive into the world of pastry with the legend herself – Anna Polyviou!

Anna Polyviou – Executive Pastry Chef at Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney

Tell us a little bit about your journey to becoming the pastry chef you are today. Would love to hear about what inspired you to choose this profession and any favourite childhood memories you have about baking!I kick-started my career in cooking at Hotel Sofitel Melbourne, where my only interest were the flashing lights at clubs; dancing and having fun. Then I was asked to enter a competition in pastry because the team of four required a pastry chef and they needed an apprentice. I was a kitchen chef and had no idea about cooking anything sweet. So I trained so I wouldn’t let my team down and the more I got involved in pastry, the more I loved it. Things turned around and I found my love for pastry!

I stayed at Sofitel and finished my apprenticeship. I was then awarded the title of best apprentice in the Hotel, which led to winning the Les Toque competition for best apprentice within Victoria which got me a scholarship to London. There, I worked at Claridges hotel in London along with doing University in Culinary Arts in pastry. I won gold in different culinary competitions and won best dessert in the UK which gave me an opportunity to go work in Paris with Pierre Herme. I then returned to Australia and did another competition for best plated chocolate dessert, won that and got a trip to Chicago to do training. I was at Bathers Pavilion for five years as the pastry chef there, which was a great stage of my career. I’ve been involved in cookbooks, judging, writing for magazines and I am also the founder of the Sydney Pastry Club.

I love how food brings people together along with emotions that flow within the room after eating and tasting different items. During my childhood, my family was forever cooking and the aromas that traveled within the house are indescribable. We have such great memories.

Do you have any pastry chef heroes?My friends within the industry are my heroes. I admire the people I know because I have seen their work and their passion firsthand. I admire Kirsten Tibballs and have seen her build her business from the bottom up, even Adriano Zumbo from the small shop till now. I’ve seen friends on TV and the way they make an impact on the foodie industry. Julie Sharpe is my HERO, because when no one believed in me or wanted to give me a chance, she did.

Tell us a little about your favourite dessert!I have a huge problem (in a good way) with custard desserts and also ice-cream. I’m starting to think I have an addiction with ice-cream with chunky bits and caramel flavored products. I like creating complicated desserts but I love eating simple- especially home baked goods.

Do you have any guilty pleasure baking reality TV shows that you like to watch?
I love watching anything on television that involves food, especially when it’s my friends doing the cooking. I get very proud of them and love to brag on their behalf to anyone who will listen.

What’s your favourite kitchen utensil?
I love the KitchenAid ProLine stand mixer. Mine is candy apple red! It’s 6.9litres litres with all the attachments. It looks sexy and works amazing, I take it everywhere; from demos at Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney to my friend’s houses when I go over to cook for them.

What is the most difficult ingredient you’ve ever had to work with?
I really struggle creating desserts with grapes and melons along with different Asian ingredients such as Green Tea/mocha because if you infuse it too much or under infuse, you don’t get the flavour you want. I’m willing to play around with melons and grapes a bit more, it just takes practice.

How about a favourite ingredient to work with?
Vanilla for sure, especially Heilala vanilla. It’s vanilla from Tonga and the money goes back into the community and supporting the local people. This product comes in extracts, syrups, organic sugar, paste and my most favourite is the vanilla beans. It’s a natural product that can complement any dish.

What tips could you give our readers that are interested in becoming a pastry chef and breaking into the industry?
I’d say take your time to learn instead of trying to be a superstar right away. If you can, work in places where you can learn from people that share the same interests as you. Most importantly – stay humble and be respectful to people and to yourself.

Best perk of the job?
The main perks for me is that I get to do my hobby every day and am able to influence someone’s emotions. I love getting people excited about what I create. I also get to travel a bit overseas and do fun things like recipe development for cookbooks.

Any tips for us at-home bakers?
My tips for home bakers is to invite me over so I can eat what they have created and they can teach me! My favourite baked goods are created at home. Make sure to:

• Pass on the knowledge and passion

• Use good quality food ingredients

• And most importantly – use Australian seasonal produce and fruit.

Finally, Anna has shared one of her wonderful recipes with us for her “Passion-ate about Yellow”. Thank you to Anna for sharing such a beautiful recipe!

Passion-ate about Yellow

In a medium to large pot bring the cream and sugar to the boil.
Once there boil for 4 minutes.
After the 4 minutes are up whisk in the passionfruit juice and bring to the boil again and boil for 4 minutes.
Take off the heat and fill moulds or glasses.

In an electric mixer bowl whisk the eggs, yolk and sugar until light and fluffy.
When ready add the chocolate in on a medium heat but only just combine.
Take off and fold in the flour and ginger.
Make a small slice at the bottom of a paper cup and fill half way with the sponge mix.
Place into the microwave and cook for 40 seconds it may need another 10 seconds.
Cut down the side of the cup with scissors to remove the sponge and reserve until needed.

Mix the sugar and stabilizer place in a saucepot and add the glucose and water.
Bring to the boil and once there, pour over the puree and juice.
Strain and allow to cool.
(If you don’t have the ice-cream machine I highly recommend pure gelato to use mango sorbet is light fresh and very tasty).

I also had the chance to visit the Shangri-La to sample Anna’s high tea that is on at the Shangri-La at the moment (and also got a sneak peek into Anna’s magical kitchen!) and will be posting about this on the blog very soon – watch this space!

Thanks to Jessica Somers-Haggie for helping to arrange this interview with Anna.

About Me

Hi! I'm Christine - I'm a Sydney based chef student by day & food blogger by night. I love learning about food every single day and share my adventures with you here. Thanks for reading! You can contact me on christine@cookingcrusade.com - I'd love to hear from you!